Seems it can do most things. A little unclear on 1080p, and how useful the GPU is (and the status of the Lima driver). I think the idea is that when Lima is working, the mpeg2 license won't be required because the GPU could then accelerate?

At least for audio, it seems like it'll do just fine, especially with a portable USB drive attached._________________lolgov. 'cause where we're going, you don't have civil liberties.

I bought a dual core 1.2Ghz hdmi key for 24€ (included shipping) and I am using it with Android 4.1 for XBMC

Cheaper, smaller, has wi-fi n built in, no problem running chrome or skype. Since XBMC for Android is out there are better options, of course there is a lot more DIY with a raspberry PI_________________True ignorance is not the absence of knowledge, but the refusal to acquire it.
A posse ad esse non valet consequentia
Πάντα ῥεῖ

@Dr.Willy: Nothing if you didn't want to :). They seemed to be the Bieber of the tech world for a while, then people kind of forgot about it once it was actually released. I was just surprised people didn't post more about their projects, its capabilities, etc.

@erm67: What is a dual core hdmi key? Oh, are you referring to something like the Chromecast? I'll be honest and say I'm not excited about implementing an HTPC with the Pi, but I'm mainly looking to have directly attached storage. "key" devices don't seem to work that way?_________________lolgov. 'cause where we're going, you don't have civil liberties.

Big media buff, was looking for something compact to play files with. I figured it would add a level of coolness to be able to control it via Wifi on an iPad or whatever. I have a working concept right now. The only thing lacking is the video player lacks a lot of the features I would need (although I may need to recheck this since it has been almost a year since I touched the project)._________________"It's ok, they might have guns but we have flowers." - Perpetual Victim

Cool... I'd thought about using an old smartphone as a "remote" for something like that. How is the responsiveness? That's been the main thing I wondered about how well something like that would work._________________lolgov. 'cause where we're going, you don't have civil liberties.

Sure, can't hurt. I don't have an actual device to control yet, but I will eventually. The main appeal of the Pi is the price._________________lolgov. 'cause where we're going, you don't have civil liberties.

@erm67: What is a dual core hdmi key? Oh, are you referring to something like the Chromecast? I'll be honest and say I'm not excited about implementing an HTPC with the Pi, but I'm mainly looking to have directly attached storage. "key" devices don't seem to work that way?

well actually the htpc proper is in cellar running on a mini-itx with a tv card and 2 HD, it doubles as a nas and webserver, it is connected with a GBit to the wi-fi router, and has minidlna and tvheadend running on it to record and show TV programs. The hdmi dongle is attached to the TV and only runs XBMC that displays content through dlna or with the tvheadend client.

the only way to have a silent htpc with 3.5" HDs is put it in the cellar

directly attached storage works with hdmi dongles and usb HDs that was my first setup, but usb2 is not exactly fast and even a good 100Mb connection is enough for the 40Mb max bit rate of a bluray .......

I knew it was a good idea to lay antenna and ethernet cables down to the cellar ...._________________True ignorance is not the absence of knowledge, but the refusal to acquire it.
A posse ad esse non valet consequentia
Πάντα ῥεῖ

Unfortunately I don't have an easy way to run cables (finished basement, no attic). My plan was to start with a standard portable USB HD, then eventually migrate to SSD once I had it worked out. Initially it'll just be music, so shouldn't be a problem. If I ever try video, who knows._________________lolgov. 'cause where we're going, you don't have civil liberties.

just for music a 128Gb usb thumb drive might be enough, they are horribly slow, it took a while for me to discover twhy I was transferring files over a Gbit network at max 8MB/s (that was the max speed of the thumb drive).

If money is not a problem the Intel NUC series is interesting, it is also possible to buy a fanless case,_________________True ignorance is not the absence of knowledge, but the refusal to acquire it.
A posse ad esse non valet consequentia
Πάντα ῥεῖ

Arduino > rasberryPI_________________The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter
Great Britain is a republic, with a hereditary president, while the United States is a monarchy with an elective king

just for music a 128Gb usb thumb drive might be enough, they are horribly slow, it took a while for me to discover twhy I was transferring files over a Gbit network at max 8MB/s (that was the max speed of the thumb drive).

If money is not a problem the Intel NUC series is interesting, it is also possible to buy a fanless case,

The data transfer rate is sufficient to serve Blu-ray movies to other machines. It is also sufficient to watch Blu-ray movies on the Raspberry Pi with a remote machine as file server. A USB attached hard disk drive works for that purpose, too. In any case, you can watch Blu-ray movies or listen to music with your Raspberry Pi. Now, what is your problem?

just for music a 128Gb usb thumb drive might be enough, they are horribly slow, it took a while for me to discover twhy I was transferring files over a Gbit network at max 8MB/s (that was the max speed of the thumb drive).

If money is not a problem the Intel NUC series is interesting, it is also possible to buy a fanless case,

The data transfer rate is sufficient to serve Blu-ray movies to other machines. It is also sufficient to watch Blu-ray movies on the Raspberry Pi with a remote machine as file server. A USB attached hard disk drive works for that purpose, too. In any case, you can watch Blu-ray movies or listen to music with your Raspberry Pi. Now, what is your problem?

Of course 8MB/s is enough to serve a blu ray that has a max (theoretical) bit rate of 4MB/s, I was just testing the network.
My point is that today a raspPI with a 700Mhz cpu and 512MB ram costs ~50€ with case and PSU while now that everybody is switching to 4 cores HDMI android dongles the 'older' generation 1.2Ghz dual core with 1GB ram and wifi built in has become cheaper than a raspPI (~30€). Since XBMC for android works like a charm, the dongle hides nicely behind the TV, there is no need for additional cables or wifi dongles right now the only reason to build an HTPC with the raspPI is because you like DIY._________________True ignorance is not the absence of knowledge, but the refusal to acquire it.
A posse ad esse non valet consequentia
Πάντα ῥεῖ

Of course 8MB/s is enough to serve a blu ray that has a max (theoretical) bit rate of 4MB/s, I was just testing the network.
My point is that today a raspPI with a 700Mhz cpu and 512MB ram costs ~50€ with case and PSU while now that everybody is switching to 4 cores HDMI android dongles the 'older' generation 1.2Ghz dual core with 1GB ram and wifi built in has become cheaper than a raspPI (~30€). Since XBMC for android works like a charm, the dongle hides nicely behind the TV, there is no need for additional cables or wifi dongles right now the only reason to build an HTPC with the raspPI is because you like DIY.

who is everyBODY? iNever öwned an anDROID. why is an additional anDROID sYstem plus a dΩngle is cheaper than a Raspberry Pi? and how comes your anDROID needs no c∞bles? and what is the big deal about a tiny dΩngle anyway? and WHY is an anDROID less DIY than a Raspberry Pi?

What is your problem? You just attach the Raspberry Pi via HDMI with the monitor and speakers, connect it to the local network, plug in a WLAN dongle or attach a USB drive with your files, put an SD card with OS and XBMC into its slot, and attach the power supply, keyboard, and mouse. Then you turn the fucking thing on. That's easier than preparing an authentic pizza.

What is your problem? You just attach the Raspberry Pi via HDMI with the monitor and speakers, connect it to the local network, plug in a WLAN dongle or attach a USB drive with your files, put an SD card with OS and XBMC into its slot, and attach the power supply, keyboard, and mouse. Then you turn the fucking thing on. That's easier than preparing an authentic pizza.

Now, buy a Raspberry Pi and support the British economy!

You know all those pins coming out the board with no use at all? Some strange GPIO or something like that ..... well that is a proper use for the board, buy it for an HTPC is quite silly, it was never meant do be used like that, did you buy the additional license to play MPEG2?

I have some ideas for a board like that but really, 'buy the dongle (and nothing else, well maybe an RC12 keyboard (16€)) install the XBMC app, put in the wi-fi password' is a lot easier and all the codecs are already licensed.

AND more importantly don't feed Broadcom._________________True ignorance is not the absence of knowledge, but the refusal to acquire it.
A posse ad esse non valet consequentia
Πάντα ῥεῖ

Anything in particular, or are you referring to 'solder it together' solutions? I'm looking to jump through as few hoops as possible, especially on the hardware side._________________lolgov. 'cause where we're going, you don't have civil liberties.

Anything in particular, or are you referring to 'solder it together' solutions? I'm looking to jump through as few hoops as possible, especially on the hardware side.

Well the fact I am a hardware engineer as oppose to a software engineer or an administrator... a small PC just is a bit meh... BUT a piece of kit that you have control over a bunch of I/O in a completely configurable way at a frequency which is quite useful, all via C is beyond useful.

We now have a dozen or so Arduino's in my lab for general use if someone wants to quickly setup some set of tests... I have mine to sort out my walking arc generator... sure I could use a 555 timer, but hooking it upto an Arduino means I can change hte duty and freq (and thus the audio pitch of the arc and its riserate) under software_________________The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter
Great Britain is a republic, with a hereditary president, while the United States is a monarchy with an elective king

Anything in particular, or are you referring to 'solder it together' solutions? I'm looking to jump through as few hoops as possible, especially on the hardware side.

Well the fact I am a hardware engineer as oppose to a software engineer or an administrator... a small PC just is a bit meh... BUT a piece of kit that you have control over a bunch of I/O in a completely configurable way at a frequency which is quite useful, all via C is beyond useful.

We now have a dozen or so Arduino's in my lab for general use if someone wants to quickly setup some set of tests... I have mine to sort out my walking arc generator... sure I could use a 555 timer, but hooking it upto an Arduino means I can change hte duty and freq (and thus the audio pitch of the arc and its riserate) under software

a walking arc generator? wtf is that?_________________"Sex: breakfast of champions" - James Hunt